Taita Taveta County officials have expressed fears of possible mass school dropout once learning resumes on January 23 due to drought and famine ravaging the county.
Yesterday, the County Food Security Committee appealed to well-wishers to support school feeding and the 100 per cent transition programme.
County Commissioner Loyford Kibaara said 150,000 residents or 30,050 households rely on relief food supplies from the government and donors.
He told the national drought and management committee at Voi town yesterday that, last year, over 93 public schools and 49 health facilities were under the feeding programmes.
National Drought Management Authority (NDMA) county coordinator Gabriel Mbogho noted poor rains will result in a reduction in agriculture production. This, he, noted will compound the insecurity situation in the area.
The official challenged farmers to practice fodder production during this short-yielding period.
Mbogho said the Authority will continue supporting farmers growing drought-resilient crops. "Our main aim is to help improve the livelihoods of Kenyans as we strive to promote food and nutrition," he told the meeting.
He said some farmers had abandoned farming as the rains had failed for four consecutive seasons.
"Tired of struggling against the lack of rainfall caused by the effects of climate change, some farmers have decided to abandon crop farming altogether," noted Mbogho.
In addition, due to persistent food insecurity, the official noted locals will continue relying on food aid from well-wishers for survival. He further decried soaring prices of commodities, especially maize, cooking oil, electricity, and fuel.
"High malnutrition rates have been reported in various health facilities in the rain-fed lowlands of the county," added Mbogho.
Framers have also blamed the county and national government for failing to distribute certified drought-resistant seeds during the onset of the rains last year.
Yesterday, Mr Kibaara noted the survival rate of crops grown during the ongoing rains currently stands at 20 per cent to 30 per cent.
"Food basket areas of Taita highlands and Taveta have greatly been affected. We might not get what we expected in terms of food production as there will be a reduction in food production," Kibaara said yesterday.
The Kenya Wildlife Service had earlier confirmed that over 140 wild animals died from hunger in the vast Tsavo National park.
